To the Future
by SinningBySilence
Summary: "Always" was just one milestone in their journey together. Even with the time that has passed since then, their future is only beginning. ONE-SHOT


_**Before I go any further, I'm just going to acknowledge those who have me on author alerts but don't recognize my user name. It was HeatXWave10, but I changed it. A look at my profile can explain why.**_

_**Anyway, I've not really been doing much on here lately, so this is just some writing yoga to get me back into practice. Hopefully the bigger projects I'm working on will come to light soon. But I'll leave it at that for now. A clean slate is always good.**_

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Rick yawned as he opened the door to his humble abode. While spending the weekend with Alexis had been wonderful, he was so thankful to be home. The trip was worth it, though.

Alexis had been stressing quite a lot about the student symposium she was participating in across the Ivy League; Columbia may have been a piece of cake to give her presentation to, but Yale was slightly more nerve-wracking to address. That's why he had driven all the way out to support her.

He never particularly liked long travel, especially by car. The trip to New Haven had only taken a couple of hours, but he had ended up leaving pretty late that evening to head back to the city. Anything for his little girl, though.

He checked the time on his cell phone as he entered the apartment and carelessly tossed his bag to the side.

11:27 p.m.

It wasn't pitch black in the loft, but only a few dim lights were on. Thank God, because navigating in the dark was definitely _not _his forte. In the kitchen, two wine glasses sat empty on the island counter. He vaguely wondered whether his mother had popped over for a visit while he was away.

He quickly dismissed this, however, and made his way toward his study and through to his bedroom, turning off the rest of the lights as he went.

As he entered the bedroom, he couldn't help the grin that spread across his face at the sight waiting for him.

Kate was sitting up on her side of the bed with a stack of bound pages of paper sitting open in her lap, completely engrossed in what she was reading. Rick had also not missed the fact that she was wearing one of his shirts.

And _only _his shirt. Nothing else. God, she would be the death of him!

Her face brightened immediately as she looked up at him.

"Hey," she greeted and patted the empty spot on the bed, silently asking him to join. "How was the trip?" she asked, accepting a quick kiss from him.

He released a tired sigh and sat next to her. "It was nice. Alexis missed you, though."

She frowned. "I know, and I miss her, too. It's just so hard getting time off nowadays, especially with Gates putting the hammer down on me and Esposito after Ryan started taking so much leave. I mean, I'm thrilled for him and Jenny with the baby, but it's left so much pressure on the rest of us."

"I know," he spoke softly, leaning over to press a kiss to her temple. "And Alexis understands. Besides, she'll be home for the summer in about a month, and I think it would be great for all of us—you, me, her, my mother, and your father, if he wants—to go to the Hamptons together."

"That sounds like a really nice idea, Rick," she said, the corners of her lips curving up into a gentle smile.

"I'm glad you think so, because I've already begun making plans for Fourth of July week."

She raised her eyebrows at that. "You're not going to set off fireworks on the beach again, are you? Because, you know what happened last year."

"No, trust me. I've . . . well, I've learned that lesson. _Twice_. That wasn't the first time we've had that type of incident."

"Ah," she nodded in understanding. "So what exactly are you planning, then?"

"Well, I was _thinking_," he began, taking her left hand in his, "that we could have our wedding ceremony that weekend right after the fourth." He caressed his thumb over the diamond sitting on her ring finger as he spoke.

She gaped at him for a moment. "In the Hamptons?" she asked, surprised. He nodded. "As in right there on the beach next to the house?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"Nothing," she said quickly, shaking her head. "I think it's a great idea. But what happened to the huge, lavish event you were talking about last week?"

He shrugged. "The more I thought about it, the more I decided that it's more . . . _us_ this way. I could tell that you didn't really want a huge ceremony, and I honestly didn't want one either. I mean, I did the chapel in Vegas with Meredith and the huge Catholic church for three hundred guests with Gina. This time, I want to do it right—something in between. We could invite Lanie and Esposito, and Ryan and Jenny could come with the baby. Hell, we might even convince Gates to come."

Kate chewed on her lip for a moment as she considered the idea. "So, just some close family and friends?"

"Exactly," Rick nodded. "Plus, that house is huge. We could have a barbeque on the fourth, let everyone stay with us for a few days, and then get married that Saturday on the sixth."

Kate nodded thoughtfully. "Saturday the sixth."

"So, it's a date, Mrs. Castle?"

She grinned. "It's definitely a date, _Mr._ Castle."

"Good." He gave her a quick kiss before standing up to undress himself down to his boxers.

"So," he began, changing the subject, "I noticed you had some company. Is Mother terribly bored now that she's in her own place?"

Kate laughed lightly as Rick climbed into bed next to her. "Actually, it wasn't Martha that came over. In fact, you're not going to believe who my dinner guest was."

"Oh? Who?" he asked, settling himself beneath the covers and pulling her close to him.

"Let's just say that Gina has decided to become my best friend now that you and I are engaged."

Rick let out an almost amused laugh. "What?"

"I know," the detective shook her head before laying it on his chest. "I was just as shocked as you are. But she showed up with an advanced copy of the next Nikki Heat book, and we got to talking . . . mostly about you."

"Hey!"

She rolled her eyes. "Relax, it was mainly about the books—okay, and maybe a few of your quirks, like how your dirty socks always seem to migrate under the bed."

"I get warm at night," the writer defended. "I don't wanna leave my beautiful fiancée and our comfy bed just to take my socks to the hamper when I decide to take them off at 3 a.m."

"Exactly. And we also talked about how you don't just take them off _before_ bed," she smirked at him.

"My feet get cold, too. Do you really wanna crawl into bed and feel a pair of popsicles up against your legs?"

She arched an eyebrow at him. "Well, I usually warm them up, don't I?" she teased. When he just gaped at her instead of saying anything, she continued. "But, seriously, Rick, we had to rag on you a little bit."

"Yeah," he grumbled. "Just give Meredith a call, and the three of you can start your own Castle ex-wives club."

Kate jabbed him gently in the shoulder. "You're being ridiculous now. Besides, I'm no 'ex' and I don't plan to ever be one."

"True," Rick sighed. "So, what else did you two talk about that _wasn't_ me?"

The detective shrugged as she reached over to turn off the bedside lamp. "Everything and anything, I guess," she said, settling back into her fiancé's arms. "We actually had a fairly long, decent conversation. But I get the feeling that her visit was more about trying to understand what made me so special that you were crazy enough to want to get married again."

Rick smiled then, truly content. "Well, I guess it didn't take her long to figure it out, did it?"

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_**Thoughts? Opinions? Don't be shy! I want to hear whatever you have to say, so please review. :)**_


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